The present application relates to surfactant compositions comprising a) at least one phosphated arylphenol alkoxylate surfactant having an average degree of alkoxylation of from 4-8; and b) at least one alkylamine alkoxylate surfactant having an average degree of alkoxylation of from 2-12 and to the use of these compositions in pesticide formulations comprising solid or encapsulated pesticidally active ingredients or formulation aids.
Numerous agrochemical formulations comprise solid or encapsulated pesticidally active ingredients or formulation aids which remain insoluble upon dilution in a liquid carrier, for example, water. Examples of these formulation types include capsule suspensions, oil dispersions, oil flowables, suspension concentrates, suspoemulsions and mixtures thereof.
Pesticide concentrates containing solid or encapsulated pesticidally active ingredients or formulation aids may exhibit settling of the suspended or dispersed components over time. This settling can lead to the creation of hard packed sediment making it difficult to get the materials out of the container. In many cases, the pesticide solids or encapsulated pesticides may stay suspended in the formulated concentrate but upon dilation of these types of formulations, the suspended or dispersed solids will settle with time to the bottom of a container. The rate of sedimentation depends on as number of factors such as particle size, particle concentration, viscosity of the suspending medium and the specific gravity difference between the particles and the suspending medium. Once settled, the sediments may become hard packed in nature, making redispersion or resuspension extremely difficult. The creation of hard packed sediment can occur when the tanks are not agitated. Interruptions in the spray schedule frequently occur due to normal breaks, for example overnight, taken by the applicator, weather changes, mechanical malfunction or unforeseen events which result in non-agitation of the spray tank.